Frymark favorite baby sling
I didn’t “wear” my first two children. During our adoption training and all the reading
we did, we read that this is a very good thing to do with an adopted child. We also read that using a stroller in China could
be a very hard depending on the province (sidewalk conditions) and the crowded conditions. We decided that a sling would be
a good thing to try.
Our DTC internet group included a woman that ran an internet store. Several ladies put their research skills
to work and decided that the Hip Hammock was the sling to take to China. Our lady took orders from the group and put in a
wholesale order with the owner of Hip Hammock (read: big discount passed on to the DTC group). We picked our material and
had a right or left handed sling custom made.
I LOVE my Hip Hammock. We wore it all over China, in the airplane (lap seat baby) and still use it at home.
The Hip Hammock does not put pressure on your back—it carries most of its weight between the shoulders. I also like
that it is not on my chest making me sweaty.
The Snack Trap!!!
We love this! Baby’s hand can go in easily but the snacks don’t fall out!
We lost our first Trap—which I had ordered from First Steps catalog. We had Cheerio’s everywhere!
Dion said to get another one NOW no matter what I had to do! After relaying this story to Robin and Len when they stopped
by, we received a call from them — they were at Toys R Us and found them! This was good news as we thought we could
only get them by ordering them. I was sent straight away to get some!
Now, although the snacks to do not fall out when the cup is tipped or turned upside down, there is still the
chance that your bundle of joy will pull the snacks out and THROW THEM DOWN. But, for us this only happens when you mix Cheerios
in with the Gerber snacks (aka Pamper snacks!!) and smarty pants throws out the Cheerios to get to the good stuff. Can’t
win them all!
Favorite Product: B i lby and Shop n Dine Comfort Cover
Carly has passed on info on a great product that a friend of hers sent as a baby gift.
“It has been wonderful. Zoe hates all things that
require her to be anywhere but in our arms, i.e. highchairs and shopping carts. The Bilby is great! It is a liner that protects the baby from germs left on shopping carts and highchairs in
restaurants. Zoe is more concerned, however, with the fact that it makes those places feel more comfortable and secure. As
much as we want to hold her every minute of the day, the Bilby makes trips to the grocery store a little bit easier! There
are some I have since seen in stores that are different name brands, but you can order the Bilby on-line (http://www.bilbyproducts.com/).”
The Frymark’s were also given a very similar product by Alia’s Aunt, called the Shop n Dine Comfort
Cover. It is a cover for shopping carts and highchairs also. We love it. It really cushions those metal carts—I’ve
always hated the way they hit the baby’s little back bone. I must admit that we do not use the cart handle cover though—just
the seat insert. (http://www.onestepahead.com)
We compared both products at the ALWW picnic. I think the Bilby wins for ease of use, as it is elasticized and uses the
cart/seat belts. Both appear easily washed. The Shop N Dine has a 5 point harness—which is good for us as Alia is an
escape artist and likes to stand in carts/seats. I don’t think you could go wrong with either of these products!
Finding Ads
One of the steps the Chinese government makes before releasing a baby for adoption, is to have the orphanage place a “finding
ad” or abandonment notice. This is an effort to locate the family. In 1999, when the ads first began, they were text
ads which might include where the child was found and what they were wearing. In 2003 many places started running pictures
(black & white or color) with the text. In many cases, this is the earliest picture you will ever find of your child.
Some orphanages now provide the parents with a copy of the ad. If your orphanage doesn’t, it doesn’t hurt to
ask if they have one available. We were very fortunate that Foshan Nanhai provides the family with a copy of the ad. It is
not a very good copy, but it is a copy of the original, none-the-less!
There are a few organizations that will sell you a copy of your child’s ad if they have it. This doesn’t happen
for all provinces, but is worth checking into if you are interested in having the ad. Do it ASAP after referral, as about
a week after they come out the organizations are flooded with requests and this slows down the response time.
We contacted Brian Stuy from Research-China (http://www.research-china.org/) to get the full newspaper page from the
day Alia’s ad ran. When the pages came in, I have to admit to a rather emotional and gut wrenching response to the pictures
covering this page. Some were boys and looked to be 8-9 years old. Bill & Carly have used Brian and recommend
him.
Another agency is ChinaFindingGirls (www.chinafinding.net). This company will also sell you a scan of the papers front
page if they have it and a photo of the ad.
If anyone has used either of these companies, would you send me your thoughts/recommendations
to share with everyone?
Lil’ Toppers
Robin B. turned me on to these one day when we had lunch after a play date. They are the coolest thing! You screw them onto a water bottle,
juice bottle or other store bought single serve beverage to turn it into a spill proof sippy type bottle!
I have been unable to find them in the area but you can order these online at http://www.snacktrap.com
Throw these in your diaper bag and you will always be prepared
when you are out and about!
Lil' Topper - No Spill - Bottled Water Sipper Cap ...Fits leading water bottles,
including: Albertson's, Aquafina, Arrowhead (Some .5 L), Arrowhead 24 oz.
w/ Sports Top, Dasani, Deja Blue, Fiji, Gerber SpringWater, Ice Age, Ironman Triathalon,
Naya, Odwalla, Palomar Mountain, and Ramona brands . Larger cap turns any 16 0z. (and up) store-bought plastic
juice container into the equivalent of a sip cup. It screws onto the industry-standard
neck of plastic non-carbonated bottles such as Dole, Tropicana, Minute Maid, Gatorade,
Ocean Spray, Snapple, and more.
Baby Signing
One of the things I read about during our wait is “baby signing”. The concept behind using sign language with
babies is that they are completely capable of communicating long before the brain and tongue are capable of working together
to produce language. If you have ever been around young children you have probably noticed this yourself.
I checked a book out of the library and learned a few signs—eat, more, milk, cookie. We began using these signs in
conjunction with saying the word right away. Alia picked up on it within 2 months.
After 7 months at home we have also added please, thank you, water, no, up, and down. When Alia is tired she uses the signs
more to communicate than making the effort to speak. Having said that, I do not mean in any way that this has slowed down
her speaking — I think it has actually helped her pick up the language faster.
We would recommend signing with your child if you are interested in learning this. Most libraries have several different
books and videos on the subject. Plus, the older kids picked up on it also—and now I can tell them “NO”
from across the room and nobody hears me!
Favorite Product: Lowepro Rover AW Camera Backpack
You know we don’t get enough carry-on! How are we supposed to carry a laptop, 35mm camera with zoom lens, digital
camera and video camera—along with all that paperwork, meds and a change of clothes apiece onto the plane???? Ugh.
I found a backpack/camera case made by Lowepro. The bottom half is a camera case large enough and padded enough to carry
my 35mm, lens, digital camera and the video camera. The top half is a backpack—which means its small, but still large
enough to double a diaper pack while in China and not wanting to leave the camera equipment laying around the hotel room.
The drawback is that it is a large pack. Not camping large but larger than a regular backpack. The straps are all padded
and it has a lumbar strap also.
Lowepro also has a smaller version called the Orion—and a new Rover that holds a laptop also. Wish they had the laptop
one when we traveled! But that sure would have been a heavy pack!
These types of backpack computer or camera bags are worth a look for this kind of trip!
Mom's Family Calendar
Ok - this is a strange product to put here. Unfortunatley, our life is such that scheduling is KEY
to ensure everyone gets to where they need to be. I carry a small calendar in my purse and have "THE MASTER CALENDAR"
hanging in the kitchen. Our life is run by this calendar.
I found a wonderful calendar that suits our needs perfectly. It is called Mom's Family Calendar. It
has the numbers for each month run down the left side of the page, and then 5 boxes across for you to write in. What
does that mean? It means box #1 is labeled MOM, #2 is DAD, #3 is Lance, #4 is Cierra and #5 is Alia. Perfect fit.
On any given day I can look at the date and read all the way across who has what - which means I know how
many things I can juggle or combine at one time. Not a bad system at all. So I highly recommend this calendar
to anyone that used a calendar system to stay organized. The squares leave plenty of room to write things under each
person. I have not found a better one yet!
Little Mommie Asian Doll by Fisher Price
I saw one of these when I went to a play date with 3 other adoptees. They are so cute. It is
a soft body doll good for little ones. You have to order them on-line from what I understand as they are not easy to
find in the stores.
Recommended product: My Points
This really isn’t a product but I’ve been meaning to pass
the info along to everyone. My Points is a web program you join to earn points
— which you use to get gift cards and such. It is free to join.
Basically, you get emails from MyPoints. You read the email and look
at the offer you earn 5 points. You actually take advantage of the offer and
the points range from 20 to thousands. Also, you can take surveys to earn points—usually
10-20. The most significant points we earn are through shopping. If you go to the site and shop through their links
you earn points per dollar. For Overstocks
its 10 points per dollar, Avon is 3 points per dollar, Best Buy is 2 points, Ebay is 2 points, Kohl’s is 2 points, Joanns
is 2 points, Magellans (travel stuff!) is 2 points, etc. For a full listing see
the site. If you also have their credit card it
increases your points even more.
When you are ready to spend your points you have many options. You can even donate them to charity. I personally almost always get a $10 gas card (1400 points) to give to my son for
babysitting for me. Other gift cards include: Starbucks Coffee, Barnes &
Nobles, Home Depot, Panera Bread, Office Depot, Target and Toys R Us. Again,
check the site for the types of things you can get.
If you do decide to join, let them know I sent you (autumnfrymark@netscape.net)
or email me to send an invitation from the site.
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